Universal Soldier III: Unfinished Business (1998)

Apparently shot back-to-back with the truly abysmal UNIVERSAL SOLDIER II: BROTHERS IN ARMS, this is marginally better than its predecessor but still a generally worthless and unnecessary second sequel to a film which didn't need one in the first place. Firstly, let me go through all the bad points. Battaglia and West are back from the first film, and they don't seem to have gained much acting skill in the process, although their characters are slightly more human and likable this time around. Human action-man Jeff Wincott returns as Battaglia's brother, this time reprogrammed as a robot baddie. Get this: he has a titanic bust-up with his brother, remembers their history, gets to do some male bonding, and then finally explodes. An interesting cameo appearance to say the least.This "explosion" is one of the most amusing aspects of the movie and a highlight of its inadequacy - a scientist tells us the blast radius is "twenty yards", but the actual underwhelming explosion is no more than twenty inches! Unfortunately director Jeff Woolnough's irritating camera tricks are still evident as the film goes in slow-motion for absolutely no other reason than to look supposedly "stylish", and sudden loud bursts of music assault the viewer for no particular reason (all loud, pumping military-type stuff, with the occasional burst of hilarious classical music during the mindless shooting as we had in Part II).The plot is utterly boring as usual, as our characters go from one dangerous action set-piece to the next, the film-makers displaying scant regard for logic or reason. The final half just seems to be lots of minor characters getting shot to little or no effect; in fact the same sequence is repeated so often that there's no impact at all when it happens. The laughable script has lines like "resurrection failure" and the like. When one robot said "nice night for a walk" (like in THE TERMINATOR) I couldn't believe my ears. The first hour is almost totally devoid of action, although the few deaths and shootings that do occur are mildly entertaining in a silly, over-the-top dramatic kind of way.Where this film is better than sequel is in its amusing sequences like when a failed soldier is burnt alive in a big oven which just happened to be there. Burt Reynolds also has a fairly prominent role this time around, replacing Gary Busey's role from the previous instalment as he chews on a cigar and speaks in frankly the most unrealistic accent (Irish? Who knows) that I've heard in a film. At least he isn't hiding in the shadows, but to watch this once respected actor (remember DELIVERANCE?) throw away what career he had - especially coming only a year after the mainstream success of BOOGIE NIGHTS - is a little sad. In a bizarre metaphor for his acting career, Reynolds commits suicide in the movie - much like he killed his career when making this film. However, there is some hope for the actor - in the film, he's reborn, so perhaps his career will be "reborn" in the next few years. I guess we'll have to wait and see. UNIVERSAL SOLDIER III is a bad film, yes, but with a few amusing minor elements to make it a harmless time-waster. The ending adds an amusing conspiracy-type twist with the insinuation that the president himself is a robot, and leaves things open for possible further sequels. Thankfully, in the three years since this was made, none have followed, which may be just as well.

This second sequel to "Universal Soldier" starring Jean Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren is a made for TV movie starring Matt Battaglia and Burt Reynolds (using an Irish accent) that was made side by side with its prequel "Universal Soldier 2: Brothers In Arms" with the aim of leading to a TV show (that never happened) Matt Battaglia continues in the Van Damme role and likewise Chandra West in the Ally Walker role.Burt has a lot more to do this time around, which automatically raises the quality of this instalment, although there is still an over use of slow motion. There are some impressive is set pieces and well directed action scenes however a bit of dodgy acting in certain quarters ruin what could have been an average TV movie. I think had he been able to anticipate the success of "Boogie Nights" and his subsequent Oscar nomination for his performance, he may have been a bit more picky about what roles he was taking, and bided his time waiting for a quality script to keep the momentum of his comeback going. However his ongoing financial worries at this time, probably dictated he grabbed what ever work was offered to him as he made seven movies in both 1997 and 1999.

This movie is a direct sequel to the second Universal Soldier movie, and makes no sense alone. Here, we get to know a bit more about things we were so extremely excited to know (yeah, right), for example who the leader of the bad guys is. The story becomes a bit more interesting than in the previous movie, and because of that I think it's a better one. The action is also better (although it still sucked). Battaglia does the same job all over again, Jeff Wincott should just forget that he ever took part in this, and Burt Reynolds (!!!, yes, Burt is in fact in this one. How low can you get) has just gone down the drain. This is not a great movie at all, but it can't be used as a torture device like it's prequel.

A film devoid of merit, it almost defies articulation in its lack of creativity, originality, and knowledge of film making. Burt Reynolds provides a complete rationale for why his career has almost come to an end with a performance that probably best describes his true essence. This film has accomplished one feat I would have thought impossible, it almost made Jean-Claude Van Damme's earlier version seem worthwhile. Put a torch to this tape and spare future viewers the wasted time.